Moving to "next message" in Mail

+I suspect maybe you have been double-clicking to open the message in a separate window.+

A lot of people like working this way. It allows you to work on your messages without the distractions of the inbox. Just about every email client on the planet has this capability.

Select a message in the list of messages in your inbox. The contents will be displayed in the viewing pane below the list of messages. Press the delete key, or click the delete button on Mail's toolbar. Mail will now display the next message contents. I suspect maybe you have been double-clicking to open the message in a separate window. If you can't see the viewing pane drag the small dot in the middle of the bottom bar of Mail's window upwards to expose it.

AK

Oh, I completely agree. The lack of this functionality is the single thing that keeps me using Thunderbird instead of Mail.app. I was searching this forum to see if maybe there is a way to do this with Mail.app that I had missed, previously. Unfortunately, I think this thread answered my question. Thank you.

If you delete a message (hit the delete key while the message is open), the next message is selected. Hit return to open it.

I find I can very efficiently read through a list of messages using the arrow keys to move up and down the list. Right arrow opens a thread, if you have threaded view on; left arrow closes the thread. Return opens the selected messages; Command-W closes the front message; Delete key deletes it.

This is especially efficient with a Smart Mailbox to list unread messages.

I never use the preview pane. This method does not use the mouse. I like it better than opening the next message automatically, since it gives more control. I can skip around if desired.

I originally thought that message navigation was the biggest deficiency in Apple Mail. Not everyone will agree, but after getting used to this keyboard-only method, I now consider message navigation -- especially using the Smart Mailbox -- to be one of Apple Mail's greatest strengths.

I don't see the behavior described in this thread. When I delete a message I've viewed in the Preview pane, the Previous message in my Inbox is selected.

I sort ny messages newest to oldest; are others doing the reverse?

I also wanted this feature, but I don't think the Mail app can do it. It's kind of odd because the web version has the next/prev message buttons.